Itoayatsuri: Marionette Manipulation
by Dragon Maiden 64
Summary: There have been many disappearances around Gyrados Lake and a young sleuth in-training happens to stumble upon a horrifying mystery.
1. Hitobashira: Human Pillar

Her eyes grew lucid and glazed as she stared into the Magikarp pond just feet below the bridge she stood upon. As the mindless fish swam about, the girl turned her blind eyes toward the calling voice of her mother.  
  
"Haruna dear, please come with me for a second," spoke a woman dressed in a traditional kimono. She spoke in slow and eloquent way as if every word she spoke was as beautiful as a cherry blossom tree in bloom.  
  
Though Haruna had a bad feeling, she went anyway. Her mother had always scolded her for acting in such a superstitious manner. A flash of rainbow light filled Haruna's mind. 'What could it be?'  
  
After what seemed like eons, the two finally reached a giant lake, Gyrados Lake. "Mama, are we near a lake? I smell water." The woman only chuckled, as if only an idiot didn't know of the sardonic outcome of this event. "Mama, are you all right?" Only more laughter was the response. "Mama, stop it, you're scaring me!"  
  
"Oh, you have yet to be scared," replied the mother as her eyes took on the glassy look of a mindless marionette's eyes. Raising her arms above her head, a slender, snake-like form exploded from the lake. It was too thin to be a Gyrados and too stunning to look like it could do harm. The pair of oversized, feathery wings connected to the beast's head, wrapped around her mother. "Now my daughter, prepare to have your soul and body belong to God's great puppet!" hollered many distorted voices, yet all came from the lungs of what used to be Haruna's mother.  
  
Haruna shrieked before she started to run away. She quickly bumped into an angry fisherman who grabbed her wrists and demanded to know what kind of a rush she was in.  
  
"I don't have time, I need to get away from her. That demon!" Was all Haruna could reply as her mind was slowly slipping out of sync with reason.  
  
"If you're gonna bump into me and make me lose my bait, you're gonna hafta make time," the fisher replied.  
  
"No, please, the rainbow light!"  
  
"What rainbo-" what followed was the hollers of the two as a beam of morphing colored light hit the two. Even the eye's of the fisherman, who was able to see, went lucid and became like those of the mother's.  
  
Glassy like a marionette's.  
  
After Thoughts: As you can see, this story has a major theme of eyes and marionettes/puppets. Don't worry, there will be more pocket monsters in the next chapter. I just needed to get the base of the story down. Please add any comments and constructive criticism is most welcome. I'm also taking ideas for mini-character names and their pocket monsters. 


	2. Deka: Detective

At the local shop/café, a group of the townswomen gathered at a corner both and to gossip nonetheless.  
  
"Isn't it such a shame?" started a local woman named Luella, "that poor woman-what's-her-name-lost her only daughter."  
  
"If I lost my daughter, I don't know what I'd do," replied another.  
  
"And to think she blacked out and walked all the way to Gyrados Lake! I haven't been able to walk that far since I was a teen!" exclaimed an older woman. The others laughed and took a sip of their coffee.  
  
In the far corner where the counter resided, a young girl sweeping the dust off the floor whispered to her grandmother, "Can I get out of here?"  
  
"Sure sweety, right after you sweep the floor. And don't go to Gyrados Lake, its quite dangerous there since so many people disappeared there." the Grandmother replied.  
  
"Aw man, the old man in the cabin promised to teach my Clefairy a powerful move. I think it was Triple Attack or something like that," the granddaughter argued.  
  
"Now, now, you wouldn't want to disappear with all of those people. Then your Clefairy would never learn Tri Attack," the grandmother replied. "Now get to the sweeping and take this." The grandmother dropped a RAGECANDYBAR into the girl's hands that quickly and greedily grasped the candy. Just as this exchange took place, a young teen dressed in black robes entered the store.  
  
"Hello, anybody here?" asked the teen. This immediately got the attention of all-of-the females in the room (for there were no males) and the ones sitting at the tables shook their heads in disgust.  
  
"Hello young man," greeted the grandmother a.k.a. owner of the store, "I'm Lissa Bethune. How may I help you?"  
  
"I was wondering if you had any potions or pokéballs for sale," the boy replied getting quickly down to business.  
  
"I'm sorry, but we've run out of potions. I should get a new shipment by noon though. Pokéballs though are in good supply. We also have a few great balls and ultra balls too. I'll go get them," Lissa quickly adds.  
  
The little girl who had been sweeping walked directly up to the boy and asked, "What's your name, mine's Lisa."  
  
"My name happens to be Mihoshu Erion."  
  
"What a strange name," Lisa replied, "Where are you from?"  
  
"Kanto, Celadon City to be more precise," Erion replies.  
  
"Mihoshu!" exclaimed Luella, "that lady who recently lost her daughter, her name is Mihoshu Miki!"  
  
"Auntie Miki!? Cousin Erin?!" the teen exclaims. "Pokéballs and potions can wait, my family needs me!" He quickly dashes out of the small shop just as Lissa walks in with a small selection of pokémon capturing orbs neatly placed on a silver tray.  
  
"Lisa, where did that boy go?" Lissa asks.  
  
"He's going to save his family!" Lisa exclaims. Lissa rolls her eyes and leaves to put her merchandise back in the storage room. 


End file.
